Title supplied by cataloger.; Original photograph has creases. Olivia de Havilland was born to English parents on July 1, 1916 in Tokyo, Japan. Her parents separated and her mother Lillian took Olivia and her sister Joan, born in 1917, to California to live. In 1925, after her divorce, Lillian remarried George M. Fontaine whose last name Joan would later take. The sisters developed a rivalry early on that would last the rest of their lives. De Havilland made her film debut in "A Midsummer Night's Dream," in October 1935. After two more disappointing films, she was paired with Errol Flynn in "Captain Blood." The film was well received and the two became a popular box office draw. De Havilland starred in many other movies in her seven years with Warner Brothers, gaining two Academy Award nominations, including one for "Gone with the Wind" in 1939. In 1943, Warner Brothers sought to extend her seven-year contract for six months because of prior suspensions. De Havilland took the studio to court and won, resulting in California's "seven-year rule," also known as Labor Code Section 2855. Still known today as the De Havilland Law, it prevented studios from extending their employees' contracts beyond seven calendar years. This was a blow to the studios and led to a blacklisting of de Havilland for two years. Moving on to other studios, de Havilland received the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performances in "To Each His Own" in 1946, and "The Heiress" in 1949, and she was praised for her roles in several other films. De Havilland was married twice, to Marcus Goodrich and Pierre Galante, and had two children, Benjamin Goodrich and Gisele Galante. Her son died in 1991. De Havilland has lived in Paris since 1960. Photograph caption dated May 19, 1948 reads "Olivia de Havilland yesterday was presented [illegible] gold medalion (sic) in recognition of her selection as the best actress in all pictures released in Belgium during 1947. The award was based on her Academy Award-winning performance in Paramount's 'To each his own.' Miss de Havilland has now received more than 100 awards and honors from practically every country in the world. The Belgium medal was presented to Miss de Havilland by J. Van Cottom, editor and publisher of Cine-Revue, most important fan magazine in that country. The award, which is made annually, is decided by a poll of Cine-Revue readers and is considered the most significant honor of its kind in Belgium. The ceremonies were held on the Paramount test stage where Miss de Havilland is preparing for her title role in 'The heiress,' William Wyler production which will start early next month." De Havilland is dressed in a hoop dress and matching bonnet for the film, set in the mid-1800s.
Type
image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;26 x 21 cm. Photographic prints
De Havilland, Olivia De Havilland, Olivia--Awards Cottom, J. v Motion picture actors and actresses--United States Periodical editors--Belgium Medals--California--Los Angeles Awards--Belgium Women--California--Los Angeles Men--California--Los Angeles Costumes Los Angeles Evening Herald and Express photographs Herald-Examiner Collection photographs
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